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In the earlier days when you could trust almost everyone, you just locked your bicycle with a key to make sure it would not be taken. Today you have to be careful. We have many people that rely on their bike perhaps as a courier to bring the ordered pizza, or as a quicker way to get through the traffic.

I noticed that today you must chain your bike to something fixed and firm, like this young main did. And I hope he does not lose the key to the chain, otherwise he will have a problem.

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“You just have to use your imagination. Your neck is a bit longer than mine and you put on some weight this summer eating all that stuff that the humans give you. If you hadn’t overindulged with the food we would be the perfect straight line. And who laid the eggs?”

“Just a minute, I was the one that had to go for swims with the cygnets afterwards. Always at the back of the row making sure none of them fell out of place and stayed in a straight line.”

“And I had to make sure that they followed me. According to statistics we will stay together for a few hundred cygnets, so we might as well get used to it. And keep floating, stay in line, be diametric.”

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This scene is freshly shot from my front garden this morning with my mobile phone camera. The sun is shining and it could be a summer’s day, although 3°C temperatures are not exactly warm. We still have February and there is even talk of snow next week, but let’s make the most of what we have at the moment.

What you see is the Jura mountain chain in the background. That is nothing special here, because I live at the foot of the Jura where the flat lands begin down to Bern and afterwards the big mountains in the Bernese Overland.

I am really frustrated at the moment with my photos. I no longer have an opportunity to shoot whilst Mr. Swiss is driving as I am driving. I am also a little homebound at the moment due to my sneezy weezy stuffed head cold which is perhaps thinking now about leaving, but keeping me from going places and seeing things. Yesterday would have been a fantastic day for photos of the Bernese Overland from the castle on the hill. I saw them spread out before me when I was driving home from the store yesterday: the Eiger, Mönch and Jungfrau all bathed in sunlight and as clear as if they were at the edge of my garden. The views of the Alps from my area can be good, but yesterday was perfect. The snow and the sharp edges of the mountains were reflected in the sun and it was just plain beautiful, the chance of a lifetime’s photography. Even from the supermarket I saw them all spread in their beauty, but a telephone camera does not do them credit and since shopping myself with the car, I no longer take my big camera with me, because I do not have a good chance to use it.

We have had good visibility all week and I am so frustrated being at home. However, if things go well today and I feel better I will saddle my wheelchair this afternoon and take a wheelie. It is now the beginning of carnival in our area. I heard the canon shot this morning at 5.00 am to signal the start with our so-called “chesslete” when people go into town dressed in their white nightshirts and hat making noise with any instrument you find. Afterwards they go to the restaurants and eat a “flour soup” accompanied with warm cheese tarts. It is all tradition. Not really my tradition because I did not grow up with it, but Mr. Swiss remembers the days of his youth when he would join in the festivities. Some take the week off from work for the carnival as the nights turn into days and others brave through it, falling asleep at work. I remember when I was a working woman and a few were falling asleep at their desk, or were still dressed in the clothing they wore during the night at the various events. Many had a distinct alcoholic cloud surrounding them, but no offence intended – that is carnival, or Fasnacht as we call it here.

You would be astonished to see what goes on in our town at this time of the year, especially in the evening. We get a calendar with the various events. This afternoon there will probably be groups of children, and even some adults, dressed in their disguises in the town and I am hoping to be able to get a few shots.

Otherwise daily life goes on. Yesterday was a bit of stress in the afternoon shopping. It was not so bad, but Mr. Swiss came with me as he had a few man things to buy that woman are not so good at. He needed a substitute lamp for one of our kitchen devices which was only available in the basement of the store and I absolutely needed a soap dish for a our new shower attachment. Nothing is ever perfect, and although we have a good metal holder for the soap, there are spaces between the steel wires where the soap falls through. Mr. Swiss had also again dropped his mobile phone and the top glass cover was cracked at the edge, which is an easy replacement.

Eventually the shopping was done and we were on our way home. Problem No. 1 was the school bus, as it was the wrong time and it was waiting outside the high school. It is possible to drive round it, but there is a traffic island in the way and it is very narrow. I managed this obstacle as luckily the bus was still waiting and not ready to drive away. The next obstacle was the special garden garbage collection. The truck, a big one, was waiting in the middle of the road whilst it chewed its greenery and I had to navigate it but my sight was blocked and I could not see if there was oncoming traffic. Eventually a guy climbed out of the truck and directed me to drive, although again there were only a few centimetres to spare when I eventually had again a clear sight of the road. Mr. Swiss congratulates me that I have become a good driver. This is fine, but when you have a stuffed up head from a cold and the sun is blinding you as you drive, it does not help.

We arrived home safely and I was glad to get it behind me. So today no driving, just perhaps in a wheelchair. And you all have a better day than I did yesterday and may it be a good one.

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Growing up in London I was not spoilt for puddles. We had more rainy days than others, and it was not a nice clean puddle like this one from where I live. No, London puddles were dirty, and not to be waded into. Talking of puddles today reminds me that I have not seen one for a least a month. We have had no rain, no snow, and only sunny days.

However the good times had now been had by all. Our carnival season begins at 5.00 a.m tomorrow morning when with drums, trumpets and anything that makes a noise people will be marching into town and around town dressed in a white nightshirt with a red necktie and naturally a white nighcap with a tassel. It is a tradition to wake up the spirits or something like that. It will probably also be waking the weather gods, as we have had snow prophesied for next week and then we will be having enough puddles of snowmelt to contend with.

Walking through puddles is one thing, but if you are dependent on a wheelchair for longer journeys like myself. and you wheel through the puddles you tend to leave a wet trail behind you when entering the apartment.

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Women’s March 2017

Originally a cockney from the East End of London. Arrived in Switzerland 46 years ago and due to meeting Mr. Swiss, I am still here. Mother of two sons, have been adopted by 3 cats. Worked 30 years as an export clerk for a Swiss machine tool company and am now retired. Like to go for walks with my camera and write blogs, flash fiction, poems to make life interesting. Speak fluent German/Swiss German, French, Italian and some Russian. Mother tongue: still cockney english.

Freshly Pressed

51 Shades of Blog

Being honest the title is based on a remark made on one of my blogs by a supporter.
"You always turn a topic inside out and on its head" were words also applied by a visitor to one of my blogs. I think she hit the nail on the head.

Prompts are there to act on, not just tell everyone what you had for lunch or your likes and dislikes. I trust that on my blog you find something spiced with humour. Mr. Swiss, my other half, has been known to say that not everyone always understands my humour (I do not always understand his).

Blogging is for me coupled with having fun. I do what I want to and not what I have to.

Disclaimer: Not reponsible for any spelling or grammatical mistakes. I do my best, but having two langugages revolving in my brain (yes, I have one), sometimes the result is more bi- than unilingual.

To participate in the Ragtag Daily Prompt, create a Pingback to your post, or copy and paste the link to your post into the comments. And while you’re there, why not check out some of the other posts too!